A few lizardmen stumbled through the snow, fleeing for their lives.
They were the first to scatter, starting as a group of over a dozen lizardmen and a few half-demons. Now only they remained.
Puff puff puff puff—
The terrifying sound of mushroom monsters running on snow echoed, but no enemy was visible.
“Damn invisible freaks!” Gora squeezed the last air from his lungs, dragging heavy legs, desperate to outrun his companions by half a step.
He envied the half-demons he once scorned. At the rout’s start, winged ones flew off, vanishing into the gray sky. Others, with joints suited for snow, sped across the tundra.
Lizardmen like him? Their hope of escape was slim in this frozen hell.
“No—! Help!” A lizardman at the rear tripped on nothing, his scream gut-wrenching.
No one glanced back, just ran harder.
Stopping meant death.
Familiar screams and dragging thuds filled the air. Gora didn’t dare look.
I’ve got a wife, kids—I have to reach the tribe!
After what felt like forever, only his own gasps remained.
Exhausted, Gora stopped, leaning on his knees, panting, glancing back. No one. Just endless snow.
“At least… I escaped…”
Puff—
Puff puff—
Round footprints appeared around him in the snow, one by one…
Despair hit. Gora collapsed, giving up.
A Fatshroom Puffshroom strolled up, tendrils curling around him, stuffing him into its bulging belly, reeking of hallucinogenic spores.
There, Gora reunited with his friends.
When he woke, he was in a cramped stinking dungeon, packed with half-demons and lizardmen.
Overhead, buzzing Puffshrooms hung upside down, radiating faint steady heat, warding off the dungeon’s chill.
No freezing, but the foul air, cramped limbs, and shouting prisoners choked him.
Nearby, a lizardman and half-demon brawled over something.
Puffshrooms flew in from the entrance, dragging the troublemakers out. When tossed back, both were frost-covered, half-dead, shivering.
Later, Puffshrooms scattered mushrooms. Starving, Gora grabbed and devoured them, not caring if they were poison.
Belly full, he slumped in a cold corner, staring blankly at the ceiling Puffshrooms with other captives, awaiting an unknown fate.
Not enough cells!
Nearly six hundred prisoners crammed into makeshift dungeons.
Half were battlefield wounded, captured. Half were caught by Puffshroom hunting teams on the run.
Not all escapees lived. Many died of wounds or froze in the icefield’s depths.
A few with rare skills got away—mostly winged half-demons. Wings made them elite…
This battle cost the demonkin too. Twenty-plus warriors died, seventy injured.
Lin Jun had most demonkin command Puffshrooms from max range, but no battlefield was truly safe. Accidents happened.
Still, deaths were within expectations. Wounded? Mycelium patches and prepped ointments handled them.
Demonkin finished tending injuries and helped clean the battlefield, gathering loot.
From mushroom-sprouting corpses, they stripped usable gear. Cold bodies were left as Mycelial Network fertilizer.
Tribes were poor, but sifting the loot piles sometimes turned up glowing rare gear with stats or skills.
Lin Jun got what he needed.
[Seven Sins: Greed Triggered]
[Plundered Skill: Demon Common Tongue LV8→LV10]
[Plundered Skill: Physical Resistance LV8→LV9]
[Plundered Skill: Cold Resistance LV8→LV9]
[Plundered Skill: Scale Armor LV7→LV8]
[Plundered Skill: Fire Magic LV6→LV7]
[Plundered Skill: Water Magic LV6→LV7]
[Plundered Skill: Enhanced Senses LV4→LV5]
…
[Plundered Skill: Human Charm LV3]
[Plundered Skill: Seductive Kiss LV2]
[Plundered Skill: Feign Death LV1]
[Plundered Skill: Regeneration LV1]
…
…
…
Learning Demon Common Tongue from Piggy, LV8 already had no barriers, but now Lin Jun was a true bilingual master.
That skill alone could land him a scholar’s gig in this world!
Half-demons’ variety meant a wild mix of plundered skills.
Most baffling? No succubi on the battlefield, yet he snagged their signature skills.
Half the half-demons probably came from succubi…
Lin Jun loved it!
Look at these Empire-scorned “mongrels” handing him treasures!
A quick scan spotted fun skills.
Skill study could wait—Lin Jun’s “loot” wasn’t done!
The two tribes, stripped of defenses, were like peeled cupcakes, ready for eating!
The Mycelial Network would reach them in ten days, but Lin Jun had a bad feeling.
Days ago, at the network’s edge, two six-clawed beasts chased a half-demon!
They spotted the mycelium, ignored the half-demon, and vanished back where they came.
Coupled with the half-demon chief’s retreat reason, Lin Jun thought of his relocating neighbor, Qióng.
That’s my loot!
Since it was beyond the Mycelial Network, he sent a demonkin-led Puffshroom army.
Little Black went too. Piggy stayed at base.
Sadly, reaching the half-demon tribe, they found ruins.
The chief, Bastardos, and his hundred-some survivors were still there.
Bastardos looked aged, scales duller, spirit broken.
Facing the demonkin and Puffshroom army, he surrendered willingly!
The lizardman tribe stayed put, soothing Lin Jun’s wounded heart.
After crushing their weak defenses, Lin Jun parasitized over a thousand lizardmen on-site, boosting their [Cold Resistance].
Then he packed the whole tribe for escort back.
These captives, after basic “education,” would be marked as sinners.
They’d earn contribution points to atone for themselves and families, regaining freedom!
(End of Chapter)
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